It is common in the prior art to provide an electrical connector having a female terminal received in a terminal cavity of a connector body. The female terminal may be held in the connector body by flexible locking tangs or fingers. The flexible locking tangs or fingers may be formed as a part of the female terminal or the connector body. Female terminals having flexible locking tangs or fingers are complicated structures to manufacture, often having at least two separate pieces to be assembled and often are large and bulky. Similarly, connector bodies having flexible locking tangs or fingers are large and bulky, and are difficult to tool and injection mold. Another disadvantage of these devices having flexible locking tangs or fingers is that the system provides only a flexible locking member engaging a rigid locking member. Unfortunately, the flexible locking member may become inadvertently disengaged, allowing the female terminal to be removed from the connector body.
The present invention provides alternatives to and advantages over the prior art.